


Entwined

by aretia



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Angst, Established Relationship, F/M, Female Pronouns for Pidge | Katie Holt, Fluff, Season 2 spoilers
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-02-21
Updated: 2017-02-20
Packaged: 2018-09-25 23:31:58
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 5,605
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9851933
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/aretia/pseuds/aretia
Summary: Shay’s vacation in the castle with Hunk turns into a desperate race to get her home when she comes down with a mysterious illness.





	1. Chapter 1

Hunk set the fresh Balmera crystal on its pad in the castle and caught his breath. Then his vision went dark and he felt a pair of cold hands covering his eyes, and he flinched. “Guess who?” said a familiar, high-pitched voice.

“Hey, I taught you how to play this game… Shay!” Hunk said, taking her hands in his and turning around to face her. “Wait, what are you doing here?”

“I stowed away,” she chirped. “Your invitation was open, was it not?”

“Um… you mean yesterday when I said I wanted to take you to the food court at the space mall? Well, yeah, but I was kind of joking. I didn’t think you’d actually come.”

“If you wish, I shall leave,” Shay said, turning her face away from him.

“No, no, of course you can stay!” Hunk squeezed her in a tight hug. “I’m just… surprised, is all. What made you decide all of a sudden?”

Shay returned the hug, lifting Hunk off his feet. “I want to see the sky,” she said simply.

“Baby, I’d give you the sky and all the stars in it just to see you smile,” Hunk said, taking a page out of Lance’s book. He would have to let Lance know that it worked; Shay broke out into her wide, adorable grin. Their faces were so close when Shay held him up to the same height as her that he couldn’t help blushing. Shay closed the distance and kissed him. He moved his hands from atop her shoulders to cradle her face and pull her in closer.

 

Sleeping together in Hunk’s small bed in the castle was like a challenging geometry test, but they managed to do it. Hunk wrapped up like a burrito in a soft blanket, tucked under Shay’s arm, with his head on a pillow on top of her chest.

Hunk could never get used to waking up in space and not knowing for sure how long he’d slept. It was still dark inside his room, so he laid his head back on the pillow and closed his eyes and tried to go back to sleep. He felt the subtle movement of Shay’s chest with her breathing. Her breath was much softer than a human’s, and she never snored, but she was a very deep sleeper so she didn’t mind that Hunk snored.

He didn’t want to sleep. He wanted to look at Shay. His eyes had adjusted to the darkness enough that he could see by the stars and nebulas passing outside the window. The way the dappled light faded in and out reminded him of clouds drifting over the setting sun in the evening, and made him feel like he was at home on Earth. Beside him was his alien girlfriend, who also made him feel at home. A new home. He had come to terms with the fact that he wasn’t going to see Earth again anytime soon, and his home away from home in the castle hadn’t felt whole since Shiro disappeared. But Shay would always be his home in the vast and lonely galaxy.

Hunk lay there admiring Shay and her soft features, tracing his fingers along the smooth stone of her cheekbones and chin, for a long moment before he was motivated to get out of bed by a different sort of feeling. He was hungry, as usual. He carefully extracted himself from Shay’s arms, unrolled the blanket from his body and laid it over her, and went to the kitchen.

He fixed a bowl of ordinary food goo for himself and devoured it before it crossed his mind that he should make something special for Shay. Pidge walked in on him trying to concoct some semblance of pancakes from the alien ingredients. “You’re cooking? Hoo boy. Skultrite cookies again?” she asked, picking up the gunked-up nozzle and squirting some food goo into a bowl.

“You don’t make cookies on a stove, you uncultured swine,” chimed in Lance, who had appeared in the doorway unnoticed, wearing his signature face mask. He sat down at the table with his own bowl of goo. “So, did Shay _rock_ your world last night?” he asked with a wink.

“Shut up, Lance,” Hunk replied.

“Yeah, I bet Shay wasn’t the only one who was _rock hard_ ,” Pidge needled.

That comment made Hunk lurch forward such that the small bottle of liquid he was trying to measure carefully into a teaspoon spilled all over his shirt. “Ew, Pidge, don’t be gross,” Hunk groaned.

“What, are you and Shay _on the rocks?_ ” Lance pestered.

“Maybe he’s not telling us because she went _stone cold_ ,” Pidge rallied.

Hunk’s face was on fire. And so was the food on the stove. He hastily grabbed the nearest semi-liquid thing he could find and sloshed it into the pan before he turned around to yell at the other paladins. “Guys, I’m telling you, knock it off or you’re going to get a face full of—” He held up the bag of purple bubbly gel he was holding and squinted at the Altean label. “Whatever this is!”

He did not like the smug smirk on Lance’s face as he said, “Sounds like someone couldn’t get his _rocks_ off.”

“Lance. Shut. Your. Quiznak!”


	2. Chapter 2

Hunk returned to his room, already a bit exhausted from the exchange at the breakfast table. "Good morning, cupcake. I made breakfast—" He found Shay still lying in bed, arms curled around the space where he used to be. Hunk set the bowl on the nightstand and sat down on the bed, laying his hand on her shoulder. 

"Shay?"

When she opened her eyes, he could instantly tell from the dim yellow glow that something was off. "Mm?"

"What's wrong?" Hunk asked.

"What makes you believe something is wrong?" Shay countered.

"You look sick," Hunk answered bluntly. 

"Worry not. I am well," Shay claimed. She sat up quickly, swayed, and leaned into Hunk's shoulder. 

"No you're not," Hunk said. He placed his hand on her forehead before remembering that she was a cold rock and couldn't get a fever. "Here, maybe eating something will help." He placed the bowl in Shay’s hands. She turned her head away, and Hunk frowned.

Shay’s culture was so focused on family unity that at first, she didn’t even have the words to express what she personally wanted or liked. Hunk learned how to read her subtle signals and figure out what she was saying when she didn’t know how to say it, and he was relieved to see that the problem wasn’t the food. Shay wasn’t just sick, she was homesick, and he knew all too well what that felt like.

He sat back against the wall and pulled her into his lap so that he could reach the bowl. He picked up a spoonful of food and guided it to Shay’s mouth. The glow returned to her eyes and she hummed happily. She was always expressive about how much she enjoyed Hunk’s cooking, and Hunk adored that. He liked holding her close and enjoying the quiet intimacy, and in Hunk’s opinion food was the best way to show someone you loved them.

"Feeling better?"

Shay smiled and nodded, though it wasn’t entirely convincing.

 

“Paladins! The ship had some strange but harmless malfunctions last night, so today we’ve landed on a peaceful planet to do some routine tests and repairs,” Coran announced over the intercom.

Recalling that Coran’s definition of “peaceful” was loose, to say the least, Hunk glanced warily out the window. Shay lay stretched across his lap, her hands tangled in his atop her chest, so he craned his neck to press his face against the glass. The planet outside was so picturesque, he thought it was some sort of virtual reality projection on the castle’s windows at first. Its sky was the color of Earth sunsets, purple and pink and orange, with the stars and silhouettes of nearby planets shining through. There was no trace of Galra invasion anywhere on the sparkling silver dunes of the planet’s surface, or really any sign of life, except for unidentified glowing specks floating through the air.

“Shay, you have to see this.” He slid his arms under her and pulled her up to sit by his side, and witnessed an even more beautiful view than the planet outside the window. Shay’s smile stretched wide and her eyes glowed bright. She took his hand and clasped it between both of hers, and Hunk blushed.

He had never thought that the wonder of seeing distant planets and galaxies would wear off, but compared to Shay, who had never even been outside until a few months ago, he felt like a seasoned space traveler just going through another ordinary day. Maybe he had grown weary of exploring, since the Galra attacked them at every turn. Shay was the spark he needed to keep that wonder alive in him.

“May we go outside?” Shay pleaded.

“I don’t know, Coran might want me to help with the repairs…” Hunk hesitated. “And it looks fine, but it might be dangerous… And if you’re not feeling well, I don’t want you to wear yourself out.” He already knew as he said those words that Shay was about to give him that pout that he couldn’t resist. “Er—I mean—sure, yeah, totally.”

 

Hunk and Shay usually walked arm in arm wherever they went, because they didn’t want to waste a moment of the rare times they were together with more space between them than there needed to be, but this was different. Shay clung very close to him with her arm draped around his shoulders. He appreciated the close contact, but at the same time he felt how heavily she leaned into his side and how strained his arm around her waist was from trying to hold her up, and he worried about her safety. Her mysterious ailment didn’t stop her from being awed by the world they had entered, or Hunk from admiring that awe in her expression.

Coran had determined that the atmosphere was safe for humans, Alteans, and Balmerans to breathe, so Hunk pulled off his helmet and shook out his hair. Shay turned to him and brushed her fingers along his cheek. “I owe you my deepest gratitude for allowing me to come on your journey,” she said. “All my life I have wished to see other worlds. This is more beautiful than even my wildest dreams.”

“This isn’t even the beginning of it. There’s so many more worlds out there I want to show you,” Hunk said. “One time, Lance and I crash-landed on this ice planet with a whole mermaid society living underwater. And then there was the Olkari planet which had awesome high-tech cities and a beautiful rainforest.” They wandered farther away from the castle while Hunk described the various planets Voltron had visited and saved.

Suddenly, Shay stopped walking and cried out, hands clutching her side. “Shay! Are you okay?!” Hunk grabbed both of her arms in his hands as she braced her hand against his shoulder and sank to her knees. She gave no response except for labored breathing. “Shay?!”

“I am well,” Shay panted.

Hunk gave her a serious glare. “Maybe something on this planet is making you sick. Come on, let’s go back to the castle.” He tugged on her hands to pull her up, but she resisted.

“Wait,” Shay said. “May we rest here for a moment?”

“O-of course.” He sat down next to her and pulled her close, and she rested her head on his shoulder for a few minutes.

Her hand reached out and pointed to one of the glowing specks that had floated almost close enough to touch. “What are these?” She tried to catch it in her hand but it darted just out of her grip. Shay giggled, and tried to reach it but it had floated high above her head by now. Hunk helped her to her feet, and she reached up and grabbed the speck. She uncurled her hand and saw that it was a tiny black worm, with golden bioluminescence shining through many pores on its body. She let it fly away, and then pointed to a pink speck floating by in the distance. “I wonder if the different colored ones look different.” Shay broke from Hunk’s side and chased after it.

“Shay, shouldn’t we go back to the castle?” Hunk called out. “I don’t know if you should—” His worries were confirmed when she collapsed on the ground, and this time he wasn’t close enough to catch her. “SHAY!” He ran to her side and leaned over her, grabbing her shoulders. “Shay, wake up!” She was unconscious, but still breathing. Hunk hoisted her up into his arms. He activated his jetpack and flew her back to the castle.


	3. Chapter 3

“Shay just collapsed. We need to get her into a healing pod,” Hunk demanded. Coran led them to the infirmary and opened a pod for her, and Hunk stood her up inside while Coran initiated the healing process. A red error symbol flashed across the glass panel. "Coran! Why isn't this working?"

Coran examined the error message. "It's behaving as if we stuck a disembodied organ or a limb in there. Like there's not enough of her for it to heal.”

"What does that mean?!" Hunk screamed.

Coran read the message for another tense second. "It means Shay is part of the Balmera." He hesitated again before saying, "She won't survive for long away from it."

"You mean Balmerans can't survive without the Balmera?" Hunk repeated. "And you didn't know about that?! We were going to evacuate them. We would have killed them all!"

"I didn’t know! One of my best buddies at boot camp was a Balmeran!” Coran said defensively. “Their biology must have changed after centuries enslaved by the Galra. Perhaps the Galra took so much from the Balmera that it intertwined its quintessence with that of the Balmerans to survive."

Hunk forced back tears. Every mention of the Galra’s conquest made his heart break for Shay and what she had been through. And now he found out that the damage they had done went so deep that even once their rule had been lifted, she couldn’t truly be free. His voice cracked as he asked Coran, "So the healing pod can't do anything for her?"

"That's a negative. It might be draining her faster, even." 

"What if we put her near the crystal? Will that help?" Hunk suggested.

"It's worth a try."

Coran released Shay from the healing pod, and Hunk caught her in his arms. He carried her to the crystal room and laid her down next to the platform. "I'm sorry, Shay. We'll get you home, I promise,” he said, kissing her forehead.

When Hunk returned to the bridge, he found Keith there with his back turned to the door. If his reaction to Coran’s repair stop was anything to go by, he wouldn’t be too happy about this, but there was no other way.

"Shay's sick. We have to go back to the Balmera," Hunk urged.

Keith turned around slowly. Dark circles under his eyes from worry and exhaustion dominated his face. “We can’t do that,” he said curtly. “Shiro is still missing. Allura is in stasis trying to find him in the astral plane, and she hasn’t communicated with us. We can’t wormhole. Our best chance of finding him is to go back to the place where he disappeared, and I won’t turn back when we're this close.”

“So you would rather just let her die?” Hunk snapped.

“I—no—that’s not what I’m saying,” Keith fumbled. “We just have other priorities right now.”

“You mean _you_ do,” Hunk fumed. "You of all people know how it feels to lose someone close to you. You know how you feel with Shiro missing, and how you would do anything to get him back? I mean, we all would. I want to find Shiro too. But you just said we still don’t have a clue where he is. We won’t lose him by going back. But we _will_ lose Shay if we don’t. Just try and imagine what that would feel like for me."

Keith hung his head. "I'm sorry."

“You should be,” Hunk said gruffly. Keith was heartless like only a Galra could be. Hunk barely bit back that low blow.

"No, I mean I'm sorry I said no. It’s not my place to make a decision like that. Shiro would be ashamed of me,” Keith said, casting his gaze to the floor. He looked up with a new determination shining in his gray-violet eyes. “You're right, we have to save Shay. Coran," he called over to the corner of the room, "set a course for the Balmera."

“Right away!” Coran answered. He left his repairs and moved over to the dais, and tried to start the ship's engines. "I would, but the ship's not responding." He jammed the button again, and the ship shook violently. “The crystal is offline!”

If the crystal was under attack, so was Shay. Hunk ran faster than anyone else down to the crystal room, where he found Shay standing with her hands pressed to the crystal. “What’s going on?!” he yelled. He ran to her just in time for her to faint into his arms once again.

“Shay, what were you doing?” he asked. 

Shay opened her eyes. “The crystal aches with me. I tried to share my energy with it, but now I feel very weak.” She slumped to her knees.

Coran and Keith arrived in the doorway then. Keith saw Shay facing the crystal and narrowed his eyes in suspicion, silently accusing her of sabotage.

“It’s not what it looks like,” Hunk insisted. “She didn’t do it on purpose. The crystal did. It formed a connection with her, or something. Those other malfunctions we experienced last night were probably because of that, too.”

“I am deeply sorry,” Shay cried.

Hunk took her hands in his. “It’s okay, it’s not your fault,” he whispered.

“This is worse than I thought. Not only can Balmerans not survive outside the Balmera, it seems they can’t fly on any crystal-powered ship,” Coran remarked.

“Then how are we going to get her back home?!” Hunk demanded. Neither of them offered an answer, so he thought of one himself. “The lions. They have power stored from the crystal, right? So Shay’s illness shouldn’t interfere with it. Yellow and I can take her.”

“You’re going to go off on your own in your lion?! No way. What if we need to form Voltron?” Keith protested.

“Keith,” Hunk interrupted. Keith’s posture drooped. He folded his arms and pouted, but nodded his assent.

“It sounds like a plan,” Coran said. “I’ll help you get Shay into the lion, and then I’ll see if the castle can take off.” He ran out the door, and returned a few minutes later with a stretcher.

“Thanks, that’ll help,” Hunk said. He lifted Shay onto the stretcher and laid her down gently. Hunk clutched her hand and whispered to her, “We’ll make it through this, Shay. I know we will. Just hold on.”

As he wheeled her to the yellow lion’s hangar, Coran and Keith followed, and Lance and Pidge came to see him off. Their faces were distraught. Lance was so overwhelmed with emotion that he ran up and hugged Hunk. “Be safe out there, buddy,” he said.

“Of course. You too,” Hunk said, returning the squeeze and patting Lance on the back. When he released him, he saw Lance trying to subtly wipe his cheek.

Pidge leaned over the stretcher. “Hang in there, Shay,” she encouraged.

“I will,” Shay said weakly.

Hunk met Keith’s eyes. He thought he might get a harsh glare or a snide comment to indicate that Keith still didn’t like this plan, and didn’t like being overridden as the temporary leader of Voltron. But instead, Keith piped up, “Good luck.”

“Thanks, Keith.” Hunk nodded. “You too.” He turned and waved as he towed Shay’s stretcher up into the yellow lion. Shay raised a limp hand and waved, too. The lion shut its mouth and sat up, eyes glowing. 

Coran and the paladins cleared out of the hangar and opened the airlock, and Hunk took off. He hovered in the air near the castle for a few minutes to see if it would start up, and sure enough, without Shay on board, the castle lifted into the air. With that, Yellow bolted in the direction of the Balmera.


	4. Chapter 4

Shay’s stretcher was positioned next to Hunk’s chair. She scooted closer to him, and he felt the weight of her head falling into his lap. Her hand rested on his thigh, tracing idle circles, and he shifted back in his chair so that she would be more comfortable. If these were truly the last moments of her life, he wanted to hold her as close as possible for as many of them as he could.

One of the things he admired most about Shay was her strength. No one else had been able to pick him up and carry him since he was seven. It was different seeing her like this, when her body was weak and vulnerable, but she was still strong enough to fight the pain. She had even tried to hide it to keep him from worrying about her, and that took remarkable strength. He wished she hadn’t, so that he might have figured out how to help her before her condition got so severe, but he still admired the effort.

Hunk glanced down at Shay, sleeping like a rock—he tried to make himself laugh with a pun and failed. She lay so still that he started to worry. What if she was already gone? He gently shook her shoulder, and she whimpered in protest. Hunk breathed a sigh of relief. He hated to deprive her of sleep, but he had to see the glow in her eyes. It was faint, but still shining, warm and yellow. Their souls were the same color. 

She groaned and nestled her face into Hunk’s stomach, as adorable as ever even when she was deathly ill. The thought was like a dagger twisting in his heart. “Shay, stay with me,” he pleaded. “We’ll be there soon.”

They landed on the Balmera, and Hunk guided Shay’s stretcher out the mouth of the yellow lion onto the surface. “Do you know where I should take you? Do you guys have, like, hospitals?” he asked Shay.

“I do not know that word,” Shay replied. “The Balmera heals us when we are sick. I only need to touch the surface.”

That was easier than he expected. Hunk lifted her off the stretcher and lowered her onto the ground. Immediately, the ground beneath her glowed and she was enveloped in a blue sparkling haze. “We made it,” Hunk murmured, tears rolling freely down his cheeks. “You’re going to be okay.”

Static blasted his ears through the speakers in his helmet, like it was trying to pick up a signal. At first it was only white noise, but when he walked by one of the larger crystals he heard a shred of a voice. By leaning his head close to the crystal, he could make out the words. “Hunk? Come in, Hunk,” Keith said.

He pressed the button on his comm-link and said, “I’m here.” He hoped this crystal was as good at transmitting as it was receiving.

“We found Shiro,” said Keith.

“Woohoo! Great job, guys—”

“He’s inside a Galra base.”

“…Oh.”

“We’re not going in without you. We need you back here ASAP,” Keith ordered.

“Copy. Over,” Hunk replied.

He turned back to Shay. “Looks like I have to go… save the universe and stuff,” he said. “Rescue Shiro, fight Galra, you know, typical paladin business.”

Shay giggled and said, “Be safe, my darling.”

Hunk kneeled beside her. “Feel better, Shay.” Then, he threw himself on top of her and kissed her like it was the last time, because for all he knew it would be. He pressed his lips into hers so hard he could already feel the bruises, and at the same time her lips met his so gently that he couldn’t pull away. The Balmera glow filled him with warmth, and he felt a deeper connection to Shay than he ever had before. Suddenly, he felt the ache in her body as if it were his own. He realized just how much she was suffering, that even the Balmera might not be able to heal her. He broke the kiss when the pain became excruciating. Shay’s eyes were closed. Hunk touched her face. “You’re so brave, Shay. Please, please get better.”

Hunk stood up and walked back towards the yellow lion, glancing over his shoulder at Shay the whole time. He took his seat in the cockpit and watched over the blue glow cloud for a moment longer before taking off.

 

After successfully infiltrating the Galra base, and giving Shiro the most spine-cracking welcome back hug of his life, Hunk started to feel dread creep back in amid the general mood of celebration. He hadn’t had time to see Shay’s recovery. He didn’t know if she was okay. Apologizing for skipping out on the catching up, he got back in his lion and flew back to the Balmera.

Hunk was shaking as he climbed into the yellow lion’s cockpit. Yellow flew on autopilot while he tried to calm himself down, but he kept fearing the worst. The surface of the Balmera came into view and his stomach settled a little bit. “Yellow, check for Shay’s vital signs on your scanner,” Hunk requested. The scan found nothing, and he started to panic again. 

He landed and got out of the lion. In the place where he had laid Shay, there was only a crystal formation in the shape of her outline. He ran closer to examine it, as he didn’t want to believe it, but the more he saw, the lower his heart sank. From what little he knew about the Balmera, he recognized it as a Balmeran grave. 

Hunk broke down on his hands and knees and cried. “Shay! No!” he screamed, his anguished voice clawing raw and ragged out of his throat. “No…” He had tried to save her, but it had been too late. He had just begun to think about a future with her only to have it ripped from his fingers by his own carelessness. “Please. Shay. Come back…” he choked out before his voice became incoherent and broken. Shay, such a bright light in the world, didn’t deserve this. Now he would have to live the rest of his life without her, knowing it was his fault. He couldn’t have known, but he blamed himself anyway.

He thought he would get to see her again. He needed to see her again, hold her close and hear her voice. But that voice was replaying at a deafening volume in his head, and he just wanted it to stop. _Hunk. I am well._ Those words she always said, like she was there speaking to him, except this time it was an even bigger lie than before. Shay was gone.


	5. Chapter 5

Shay’s family had been frantic when she disappeared for two days, and even more so when she reappeared on the Balmera in critical condition. As soon as she touched the surface of their planet, they followed her signal and carried her back to their home in the tunnels. They brought her the finest healing crystals and cave bug stew, and in a few days she had recovered significantly.

Shay lay awake in her bed. Her hand was pressed to the wall, feeding her a mainline of the Balmera's energy, as well as a constant stream of all the communications buzzing about the planet.

There was one signal that caught onto her heart like a tether. Hunk. She could hear him crying out her name in grief. She sent a message back that she was well, but he was too distraught to hear it. She was still a bit weak and shaky, but she could make it to the surface for him. Hand trailing along the wall, she made her way through the tunnels. 

Hunk could barely see through the tears when he felt a familiar hand on his cheek. "Hunk, my heart. I am here." 

He looked up, blinked a few times, and saw Shay kneeling in front of him. “Shay! You’re alive!” he sobbed, flinging his arms around her and pulling himself into her lap. He sniffled loudly and buried his face in her shoulder, wiping the tears from his eyes onto her robe. She rubbed his back as he shuddered and gasped for breath, and finally composed himself enough to speak. "How did you know I was here?"

"The Balmera carried your message loud and clear," she told him, pointing to the spot where his hands had been, glowing blue. "You didn't seem to know how to receive one back, so I came to reassure you.”

“I thought only Balmerans could talk through the Balmera,” Hunk commented. “And Princess Allura, I guess.”

“With a bond as strong as you and I have, how could she not accept you as one of her people?” Shay smiled.

Hunk kissed her, squeezed her tight and caressed her face, making sure she was real. Shay was alive, Shiro was back with Voltron, and everything was right with his world again. Except for one thing. “It’s so sad that you’re trapped here,” Hunk murmured.

Shay looked around at the Balmera, the shimmering crystals on the surface and the painted yellow-green sky. “It is not a bad place to live,” she replied.

“I know, but still. I want you to come on adventures with me. I want to show you the universe.”

“You already gave me the sky,” Shay quipped, winking.

Hunk blushed. She remembered that cheesy line? “I meant it. Seeing you on that other planet was so beautiful. You were so… awed, and I want you to feel that way again.”

“My wish is the same,” Shay confessed. “But even were my body not tethered to the Balmera, I cannot abandon my family.”

Hunk nodded thoughtfully. "Well, once Zarkon is defeated and Voltron's work is done, I could live here with you," he offered.

"I do not ask you to choose between your home planet and mine," Shay said.

"Good point. First I need to find some way to call my family and tell them I'm safe, and then tell them I’m in love with an alien," Hunk chuckled. Shay smiled and laughed softly too.

He noticed that she still seemed weak from her illness, so he scooted off her lap and tugged on her shoulder, pulling her to lie down on the ground next to him. He slipped his arm under her neck and folded his arms around her shoulders. Shay laid one hand on his waist and the other cradled his face. The perfect position for stargazing, since Shay was the brightest star in his universe.

Looking at Shay’s face so close to his finally calmed him down enough that he let his mind wander. The crystal that had made him break down and think he’d lost Shay was behind her, still in view. “So, you’re alive. Thank goodness. But then what is that crystal doing there? It looks like one of the grave crystals you told me about once.”

Shay glanced over her shoulder at the crystal. “It is indeed, but we are far from the place where you left me. That one is ancient.”

“Oh. Guess I was so worried about you that I messed up the coordinates.”

“I’m sorry I worried you,” Shay said, pressing her forehead to his.

“It’s okay, don’t apologize. Everything’s okay now that you’re here.” With Shay in his arms and the Balmeran ground beneath them, he sensed again that energy, that profound connection that he had experienced when she began her healing process. Instead of pain, this time he felt the relief and joy of being reunited with her, only doubled, because he was feeling her emotions alongside his own. It was blissful to be so in sync with her. He started to drift off until another important thought crossed his mind.

“Hm. Speaking of crystals. When I was here earlier, my helmet picked up a message from the other paladins from galaxies away. The crystals were acting like some sort of super-antenna. Maybe I could use Balmera crystals to make us intergalactic cell phones.”

“What is a cell phone?”

“It’s a device we have on Earth that we use to communicate with anyone on the planet, kind of like how you guys talk through the Balmera,” Hunk explained. “That way, even when I’m off doing Voltron stuff, I could still talk to you and see your face.”

“I would love that.” Shay grinned.

“Me too,” Hunk agreed. “It’ll be tricky to make one that can connect with you no matter how far away I am, but I’ll figure it out, for you.”

“Thank you, Hunk,” Shay said. “And I will endeavor to find a way to come with you again someday.”

“That would be amazing,” Hunk said, nuzzling her cheek.

No matter how hard it would be, they would see each other again. No amount of distance could break them apart. Just as Shay’s quintessence was linked to the Balmera, her soul and Hunk’s were entwined.


End file.
